> > The first: I'm curious how you all put together programs when calling for a > group of complete beginners. What's generally the progression of moves > that you teach? Do you think dances with the most basic of moves (say, a > dance that's all circles, stars, and long lines, not even a partner swing) are > helpful in getting people oriented to dancing, or are trivial and boring and > will make people think contra is dumb? (People "thinking contra is dumb" is > actually a bit more of a concern for me calling college dances, where most of > the folks to turn out aren't necessarily of the 'contra mindset' and so it's > important to hold their interest and make them think that what they're > doing is exciting and worth their time--they're not necessarily going to stick > with it for the evening, or even for more than one dance, if they're not > immediately into it.) > [Janet Bertog] Hi Maia, keep in mind you are going to get a huge diversity in opinions for this question. As a more recent dancer and caller, I feel that teaching dances without a partner swing are going to be perceived as dull and boring by your mostly college crowd. Students are most interested in interaction with the person they have come to dance with. Times are different now and partner interaction is wanted. I would start with a basic dance that has at least a partner and neighbor swing in it. Getting them into the swing early and with different people is going to give them more of an opportunity to learn it and practice it and people like to swing, so get it in there early. From there I like to start my dances with Dancing Spell by Cary Ravitz because it has most of the basic moves in it.
> The second, which ties into the first: how do you teach good contra > etiquette--*especially* how to swing properly--when you don't have > experienced people in the crowd to show the way? At my dances at school, > most of the swings are tensionless and/or an awkward sideways gallop; very > few of us go to outside dances, so the overall experience level seems to be > capped. Have you found an effective way to *teach* proper swinging, > besides throwing a beginner into a crowd of experienced dances so that > they eventually absorb it by osmosis? How can I get swings at my college > dance up to snuff? [Janet Bertog] When I do a beginner's lesson, I like to teach the concept of giving weight. Some people don't like that word, find something that works for you. But I think that is a critical part of the dance. I teach the connection within a group - connection with a light grip, not a choke hold. I start in a circle and have them circle left and right, reminding them to keep their elbows bent and to feel the connection within the circle. Then I teach a balance and swing. Teaching the balance as part of the swing is important in that giving weight and connection. Sometimes before I do the swing I have them do a two hand turn and have them think about when they were kids on a playground. Remind them that the tighter they are together, the better the spin (think about an ice skater that spins faster when they pull their arms in). Then I teach the swing from there, reminding them to keep that connection and to lean back slightly into their partner's arms as they do it. I demonstrate this. I show how the buzz step works and also tell them that they can do a walking step in the same pattern. I emphasize that they are next to their partner but facing them, not directly head on with their partner - this allows them to walk straight forward rather than galloping. I spend a large amount of time on the swing and giving weight. Then I get them in a line in hand's four position. I do the circle left and right again, emphasizing the connection. I have them swing their neighbor. Circle left three places, swing their partner. I teach the directions of the hall and passing through to the next set. From there, how much I cover depends on how much time we have. I don't find a lot of advantage in a laundry list of the different moves. So if I teach the moves I will teach them as the first dance. I may walk through my first dance with the beginners so they can see the flow of the moves from one to the next. Sometimes I will emphasize that the moves have flow and connection. I like to emphasize the connection of the dance with your partner, your neighbors, your line and the music. I will often emphasize the timing, counting out the beats as we do a circle, for example. For better or worse, modern contra dancing emphasizes the swing. For me, that is for the better. I love it and I emphasize it in my teaching. A good swing is so important to the success of modern contra dances. I like the idea of teaching during the walkthroughs, especially if you have a lot of people out there who are inexperienced or need pointers. I go back and forth on this, because I don't want to overdo it. I have not used it a whole lot, partly because I have not been in an experience that was mostly beginners, partly because I haven't called that much, and partly because I'm not sure how the experienced dancers will react. Greg's idea of getting the crowd to help with teaching is appealing. I may teach one thing in each walk through, like giving weight to make the circle finish on time or how to allemande properly. I should mention, I "borrowed" all my teaching techniques from other people, combining together ideas that I liked.
